Friday, February 02, 2007

Friday 02/02 A.M. Quickie:Countdown to XLI Kickoff

Super Bowl XLI Ramp-Up: Here we go. Save your game predictions (for now). I'm going to have a stand-alone post for game picks, coming later this morning. The three ways I'm looking at it, so you can get ready:

(1) Which team do you think will win, straight up?

(2) Which team do you think will win, against the 7-point spread favoring the Colts?

(3) Which team are you ROOTING to win?

As you'd guess, they aren't necessarily compatible. In fact, I've got a mixed bag. (Will I stick with my preseason pick of Colts-over-Bears or go with my gut?)

Meanwhile, Prince rules. Apparently, Prince provided the greatest Super Bowl press conference of all time yesterday, doing a set of songs, rather than your ordinary "Q&A" format.

(Having covered one of those once, they are brutal. I can only imagine how fun it was to actually be there to hear Prince essentially do a mini-concert for a small room of people.)

Considering this start, Prince has the potential to be the best choice for Super Bowl halftime entertainment in recent memory.

West: Carmelo left out! Perhaps spending too much time on his MySpace page? His new teammate AI made it, along with Dirk, Parker, Nash, Marion, Amare and Boozer.

Two dynamics worth noting, both around injury-related issues:(1) Boozer is injured, but don't expect David Stern to pick Carmelo Anthony to replace him (although there will be HUGE fan and media pressure to. Will this be the sports blogs' big movement?)

(2) Anytime Howard and Amare (who will likely start at center for the West over injured Yao) face off will be epic.

More NBA:(1) Why are the Suns so much better this year than last year and why is this the year they topple the Spurs and Mavs for the West title? One word: Amare. And last night's performance is a good representation of why: Amare had 24 points and 24 rebounds and the Suns thumped the Spurs by 16.

(2) Dwyane Wade hit for a franchise-record 24 4th-quarter points (41 overall) to lead the Heat over the Cavs.

UPDATE (2 p.m.): I don't usually read Simmons (I wouldn't want to see any quality analysis that is half-formed in my own head articulated by him before I could claim it as my own original thought), but I just glanced at Simmons' mag column about "Fantanking," and all I could think of was that it was about time he got on the bandwagon. How long have I been talking about the value of tanking? Since the start of the Quickie chat? Longer?

There's a very simple hypothetical that I use: Would you trade an 0-82 season for LeBron James, straight up? A single winless season in exchange for LeBron for the next 10 years. Let me make it more enticing by saying that if you turn down the deal, your team will only win 17 games anyway, like the Cavs in 02-03, so it's not like you'll be missing anything by conceding the entire year.

NFL Crime-Watch:(1) Chad Johnson joins Bengals cavalcade of cop-fodder: He is questioned by cops in Miami about a shooting death that happened there. CJ is NOT under suspicion.

Maybe the cops brought CJ in to work as a profiler: No. 85 certainly has enough experience being around criminals.

(2) Andy Reid's sons are the new Bengals: One is suspected of pointing a gun at a motorist. The other is accused of possessing drug paraphernalia. The Bengals 10-day contract is coming any day.

College Hoops Parity Watch, Pac-10 Edition:(1) No. 18 WazzouState swept No. 20 Arizona for the first time since '83, beating the Wildcats in Tucson last night.

(2) No. 5 UCLA avenged a loss to No. 9 Oregon from early January with a 12-point spanking in L.A. I'm off the Ducks' bandwagon.

UPDATE: ACK! HOW COULD I HAVE FORGOTTEN TO WRITE ABOUT UVA'S AWESOME WIN OVER DUKE? Let me sum up with pith: WOO, HOOS! BOO, DUKE.

Morning Miscellany:(1) Eric Gordon, one of the Top 5 high school hoops players in the country (and Illinois de-commit who went to rival Indiana), had 43 points last night on ESPN2 and simply destroyed national No. 22 Loyola, who – if you missed it (and how could you?) – feature Michael Jordan's sons.

(2) There is justice in the world: A judge dismissed that ludicrous "discrimination" lawsuit that was brought against the Angels for handing out giveaway bags to women fans only – on Mother's Day.

Carmelo-vs-Shanoff MySpace Challenge: From the injury of an All-Star snub to the insult of having me gain on him! Merely four full days into "The Challenge" (as it is now known throughout the MySpace Universe... or perhaps only in my own head):

I have 299 friends (as of 7:15 a.m. today). Carmelo has 31280 friends. The "1 Percent" Goal is 313. I am now merely 14 away, and I suspect we can hit the goal by the end of the day. If you're on MySpace and haven't joined the effort, have at it!

UPDATE (11:25 a.m.): SUCCESS! In approximately 96 hours, my Challenge has been met! After my last check, I was at 322 friends. Carmelo was at 31,398. The "1 percent" goal was 314 -- done! Huge thanks to everyone on this terrific effort. I won't be greedy and look for 2 percent, but instead:

(1) Continue accepting as many friends as want in, and (2) Ask for your help in finding new quasi-celebrities to Challenge. Ideally, they would be athletes. Not A-listers like Melo, but ones a little further down the chain. Send any ideas to my email above (or leave a message on the MySpace page).

Happy Groundhog Day! That furry rat says spring is coming early this year. Question...who is with me and saying that Groundhog Day is the most underrated Bill Murray comedy and is one of the top 10 underrate movies of all time?

Come on, Dan. The Suns are winless against the Mavs and Jazz, two teams they'll have to go through if they're the real deal. A win against the Spurs, who have also lost to the Rockets and Jazz in the past week, doesn't mean anything. I wouldn't anoint them yet...

Making up for the lateness of yesterday's post by getting it up really early Dan? Oh well, I'm down with that.

I guess personally I don't really notice the hype except on the internet. I go to a school where we don't have cable in housing unless I want to pay for it and I just can't afford that. So the internet hype has been pretty good so I've noticed it. I'll post my picks in the later post.

In the NBA- I'm glad Carmelo isn't on the All-Star team. He was out for 15 games. That's over a quarter of the season so far. He doesn't deserve it.

Reid's latest is that one of his sons admitted to using heroin prior to driving. That's a big whoops. However, this is a coach's son and personally, I don't think it should be a story. I really hate how the media and us seem to think we need to get invovled in everybody's personal lives. That's a big problem in society today.

Off the Oregon bandwagon after a loss to No. 5 UCLA??? Wow, you seriously need to just stop getting on bandwagons Dan. You're gonna hurt yourself.

Also, there may be justice in the world with that lawsuit, but I still say there isn't justice in the world when a church can'thave a Super Bowl party using their projector as the screen because it's bigger than 55 inches diagnally. What complete bullshit. The NFL just continues to be the No Fun League.

no mention of the ridiculous snub of Joe Johnson? It can't be because he's not on a "winning" team: Kidd and Carter aren't either. Hamilton? Joe's out everythinging him. More ppg, rpg, apg, steals per game. Billups was hurt for a month! (apparently absence only matters if it's Stern's fault). This could all be solved by having a minimum games played eligibility. If you haven't played in 50% of your team's game, you're not eligible (Shaq, that means you!). That would put ManChild (Howard) as a starter, and Butler as Howard replacement and free up a wild card for Joe.

Interesting story about Ted Johnson and Bill Belichick. Not really surprising to me that Belichick would disregard player health for playing time and winning opportunity. Of course, that's what coaches are supposed to do.

Oh..I forgot the SB questions Dan posed:At the start of every season, teh same mantra is repeated 'Defense wins Championships' but by the end of the season...noone remembers.

Bears will win straight up (though I actually want Colts to win).Obviously, that means they beat the spread.

Nah... there's no use for scrawny, white, drug-addicted, red-headed sons of coaches on the playing field...

They're usually sent to the coordinator's booth.

@ revscott:"Oh...and it's weird to see Jordan sitting in the stands cheering."

He's just plotting his next glorious return to the hardwood, scouting high school teams to see the kids he'll be playing against.

Oh, and the Super Bowl Pick is up, along with some random ranting about the lack of Customer Service in today's society. Basically, I just needed a place to blast a couple of companies - what better spot thatn the InstaWebs?

rafael do not believe everything you read. Let us have some back story on Ted Johnson, He beats is Wife and he is now admiting he has a drug addicition. And of course he can not blame hime self so he has to blame someone else. He was a pro athlete and a smart man if he could not go on the field and play he should of just said so and not just taken the jersey and headed out on the field.

I think Groundhog Day is good, but an underrated Bill Murray movie is "The Man Who Knew Too Little."

So no Melo....how about Paul Pierce? 26.6 a game, and if he's not the difference between the Celtics being a .400 team and a .100 team, I don't know what is...

Rafael, what's the Ted Johnson story? He was pretty overrated most of his time in Foxboro anyway.

Honestly, about the church showing the game....is that appropriate? The skankfests that make up the commercials aren't exactly *appropriate* to show in church. Imagine if Nipplegate had taken place during a screening in a church. The walls themselves might have collapsed in on everyone as a sign! :)

FYI on the Reid Boys...it gets worse. After obtaining a search warrant they found more guns in the Reid's home. Plus, apparently, one of the boys admitted to being high on heroine at the time of his accident. The other one brandished a gun to another motorist during a road rage incident. It's getting ugly...

Here's my problem with this whole thing. And I say this as a Pats' fan, but also with a lot of respect for Ted Johnson.

The tests for concussions are basically just observations from a doctor. Blurred vision, poor balance, headaches, etc. There are "scientific" tests or imaging that can diagnose with certainty, but for the most part, it's subjective.

So, if a player knows the "correct" answers to the doctor's questions, then there's no real way for the doctor to say that the player is unable to participate in contact drills or play in games.

Basically, the player can determine when they "feel" ready to retun. So for the player to then say that the team and the doctors rushed him back too soon is a complete farce.

I only said it was an interesting story, not that I sided with anyone.

Still, cmon Pats fans...toss the player under the bus because he's no longer on the team. tsk.

IMO, if Johnson didn't feel right, he should have told Belichick that. He was, and is, a grown man. Like I said, Belichick's aim is to field a winning team. Johnson's should have been to have a long career. If he gets cut..file a grievance, probably win, get money, go play somewhere else.

I completely agree with the minimum game idea...that is the best solution I have heard yet!

As far as the church thing goes, the NFL needs to think things through before reacting. They make themselves look like fools over something as little as a few hundred people across America watching a great game together.

@ brian in oxford

Appropriate? IMO that the "church" is not made up of sticks and bricks but of the people. Those same people could watch the game together anywhere, so would that make it appropriate? I agree there is lots of stuff that is inappropriate, but it doesn't matter where we see them, they're still inappropriate. BTW, I'm not attacking you, just stating my view point.

Sorry for the theological rant.

I will be watching the game, with about 15-20 other young couples, funny enough, in an old small town church my friends bought and turned into their house.

Interesting....it does explain how he fell off the depth-chart cliff. Wow, J.R. Redmond, there's a blast from the past, too.

Has it been proven, one way or another, if football padding and helmets save more injuries than they cause? I can't imagine ANYONE going in head-first unprotected....although there still could be the inadvertent severe head-bump (think Vinnie Johnson / Adrian Dantley '87)

I'll agree on the "the church is the people, not the building" concept....but just surprised that something like that would be held amongst the main celebratory area.

(For instance, I watched the super bowls and ncaa championships from college in the church basement....not by the altar....at least you knew the 10 or so people wouldn't be as likely to get rowdied up and swearing!)

How has no one mentioned the fact that the Bears's IDEAL opponent for the Super Bowl (excepting a non-playoff team like the Raiders) is the Colts? Let's look at the breakdown:- Colts weakness against the run. Yes, they've been strong in the playoffs, but the Bears will be able to run because A) they have 2 good RBs, and B) they have something none of the other Colts opponents had, namely -

- A vertical threat off the play-action. Bernard Berrian, come on down. Rex's best balls are downfield bombs to a streaking Berrian off of the play action, something the Bears do well and something the Colts can't defend with their secondary if they're committed to stopping the run. (KC, Baltimore, and New England had no where NEAR the downfield threat that Berrian represents).

- Smashmouth defense outdoors on turf. With the exception of the Ravens (who shut down the Colts offense but had, predictably, no offense) the Bears are the fastest, toughest, most hard-hitting, turnover forcing defense the Colts have faced in the playoffs. Urlacher, Briggs, and Hillenmeyer all have speed to cover WRs (taking away some of the no-huddle advantage). And the game is outside on turf, slowing down the Colts (an advantage that might have given New England the win).

- Special teams. Bears are probably the best in the NFL. Colts are one of the worst, almost losing two games (to the Jets, and in the playoffs to NE) due to poor special teams play (apologies to Vinateri). No way this doesn't bite them in the ass...

- Lack of respect. As ridiculous as it sounds, these Bears believe they get no respect, and feed off of that dis to get amped up for a game. Everyone is picking against them, and when conventional wisdom is all going one way, you know what that means (see, e.g. 2006 World Series, 2007 BCS Championship Game, Boise State-Oklahoma, New England-St. Louis Rams Super Bowl, etc.)

"Groundhog Day" is not underrated. It's ranked exactly where it ought to be, highly. It's a movie that everyone knows about and agrees is great. It's always on TV and one of those movies that no matter what part it is when you start watching, you know you are going to watch the rest of the movie. It is easily and often quoted (since scenes are repeated).

It's clearly one of the best comedies of the 90's and rated #34 on AFI's top 100 comedies of all time. It stars one of the biggest and most successful movie comedians of the last half century.

How does that fit the description of underrated?

As far as the church business goes, the NFL is right on. The rules are the rules. You don't get to make legal exceptions for churches (well, except taxes I guess). If they allowed this church to do it, then why not some guy and all his buddies? Why not a frat house or entire campus gathering? Next thing you know, people would start charging addmission to come watch the big game on their BIG screen. Nope, no exception for churches because that would just be hypocritical. As far as the sanctity of watching the game in a church: it's the sabbath, why are those people watching the game at all?

I think we should wait on crowning the Suns as kings of the west until after they actually beat Dallas! They've played twice already and Dallas has won both times. Not to mention, the Mavs beat them in the playoffs last year. Sure, Amare is back, but Dallas has improved this year and is a much deeper team and a much improved defensive team as well. Yes, the Suns are a great team but so are the Mavs. Just food for thought.

The Menu for Sunday is yet to be determined. SInce normally for my Super Bowls Parties I likes to do things that are specific to the Areas the Teams are from. The problem I am having Indianapolis is not really well known for a certain type of food unless I am missing something.

Carmelo should have gotten in. The guy served his suspension and to punish him for being suspended is a little like double jeapordy. Despite the fact that the suspension was for a ludicrous amount of games, while the last 2 "punches" thrown in games this season have both warrented ONE game suspensions. My hope is that he uses this snub as motivation and destroys the league the rest of the year (ala Agent Zero). Who knows, this could damage Dan's chances of catching 'Melo on myspace now.

I agree the rules are the rule without exeption, but I am thinking more along the lines of anybody having a group together to watch it. The way I understand it is that the NFL is only worried about TV ratings going down and losing $$$$. I feel that it should be okay for anyone, anywhere as long as they are not making money on the gathering (entry charges, selling food/drinks). As I stated before, we will have a big group together, some will watch it, some will just hang out (wives).

I was in Tahoe a few years back and paid money to watch the game on a huge screen TV at a casino. And they gave away prizes. It was fun. The NFL just chose the wrong group to go after, because it's happening all over the country. Actually i might ask my friends to kick in some cash to come watch on my 60" plasma, just to stick it to the man.

good argument. i was saying underrated in the lines of "all time greats" and when i think all time greats, i think of caddyshack, animal house, and christmas vacation. dumb and dumber and the christopher guest movies are up there. i meant it in the sense that when you say, "top 10 comedies of all time, GO!" groundhog day most likely won't come up. for me, it would.

rebuttal: that list you cited ranks caddyshack at #71. yikes. "some like it hot" is #1? i've never seen it nor have i ever heard of it. but i am not the only person on earth.

Groundhog Day and The Man Who Knew Too Little are both great Murry movies.

Something to factor in the "blowout" win by the Suns. They had two full days rest while the Spurs were playing a 2nd of a back to back. I wish the NBA wouldn't schedule big matchups ie. Mavs/Spurs, Pistons/Heat, Suns/Mavs ect. where one of the teams is playing in a back to back situation.

I'm right there with you on Groundhog Day. I don't see a lot of movies, so I didn't see it until like 2001 when my kids borrowed it from the library. Everytime someone drops something at my house, someone will pipe up, "Just put that anywhere, pal." And "I think we should meet again... how about tomorrow?......... is that not good?" Priceless stuff.

On the church issue (speaking as a church music director in charge of copyright compliance for our church)- the law is the law; however, it's a stupid law. The 55-inch rule was written when nobody had TVs bigger than 27 inches in their house, and almost nobody had projection TVs or video projectors, especially churches, who usually had to make do with someone's discarded leftover electronics. It just strikes me as odd that they spend millions of dollars trying to make sure that the game pulls in high Nielsen ratings for their advertisers, and then fusses over a Baptist church that wants to show the game in their facility. Sheesh.

Hated him as a player, but I really like Troy Aikman in the booth. He doesn't try to do too much, gives his opinion when merited and sticks to topics that he's qualified to talk about. I barely notice him until he's offering something in the flow of the game that is most of the time actually useful, which is how it should be. Shame he's always paired with Joe Buck.

My favorite for play by play are Sumerall and Keith Jackson. Shame they are both retired. Everyone else is basically garbage.

Nantz and Simms are okay and one of the best pairs out there today (which isn't saying much). Usually they do a good job, but for the Super Bowl it will be obnoxious as always because it will be filled with puff pieces and stories that have nothing to do with the game targeted at all the people who will be watching that aren't actually football fans (this is the problem with how Monday Night Football does things too).

As a volunteer youth leader and sound board techy I agree with you whole heartedly. I think it would be a great way to get a bunch of kids (or adults) together in a safe, fun place to hang out and talk sports, but we cannot because of the rule.

Gus Johnson is excellent....especially on basketball. "Gonzaga....the slipper still fits!" was his signature call back from '99, when they made their legendary run.

Because all football on TV is provided by national announcers, you can't really ask who's good on the east coast versus middle America. Unless you want to talk local radio....I can hear Pats, Jets, and Giants on the radio, and all 3 have great play-by-play guys, and all 3 have awful, homer, "analysts"....although the Giants have Dave Jennings as a 3rd man in the booth, who's not too bad.

I think Aikman's strength is that he doesn't make the broadcast all about listening to *him*....like a Buck or Michaels/Madden. Nantz is so freakin' smarmy, anyone already cringing for whatever cutesy line he'll throw out there at the end? It's like, he covers the game well, but he is so awful at framing the moment it's taking place in.

Yes, 0-4 against those two teams, but 3 of those 4 losses were within the first two weeks of the season when Amare was not 100% or even playing more than 10 minutes a game. And the other loss was by two points in Dallas, so I'll agree they are 0-1 against those two teams. The other three games are really inconclusive.

@Chaddogg,

Couldn't agree more. I LOVE the fact that everybody is sleeping on these Bears. They were pissed about everybody loving the Saints too and we all know how that turned out.

@ CMFost,

Don't forget the Italian Beef, use the crock pot, season, and serve on italian sub bread. Dip in the juices. Or get some Italian SASage.

Air Gordon was insane last night. While he was on the floor he outscored Loyola 43-39. That kid is good.

Sean Singltary's shot was one of the most athletic things I've seen this college basketball season.

But the best moment of Duke/Virginia last night was when the game was approaching an end there were these 2 kids holding up a sign that said "Sportscenter is next unless DUKE needs more time". All of the announcers thought it was hilarious. What was ironic though was when virginia went up 2 with 1 second left and Duke had to go full court just like in the Virginia Tech game but this time didn't get the extra time (because they were on the road) and lost.

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DanShanoff.com is a sports-blog spin-off of my long-time ESPN.com column, "The Daily Quickie." Anchored by an early-morning post of must-know topics, the blog is updated frequently throughout the day with new posts and user comments.